New Records of Mites Associated with Zethus spp. Potter Wasps at Coahuila and Tamaulipas, Mexico

Abstract

Some mites of the family Winterschmidtiidae have symbiotic relationships with eumenine wasps that carry mites in different body cavities. The objective of this work was to study the diversity of mites associated with potter wasps of the genus Zethus. Seventeen individuals belonging to three species of Zethus (Z. aztecus, Z. miscogaster, and Z. montezuma) were recognized from the insect collection of the Universidad Autonoma de Tamaulipas (MIFA-UAT). Of them, six specimens of two species, Z. aztecus, and Z. miscogaster, had phoretic mites adhered to the body, mainly in cavities of the propodeal and metasomal regions. Ninety-two mite specimens were collected, and two species were recognized: Vidia arizonensis and Zethacarus miscogaster, with all being phoretic or resistant nymphs (hypopus). These are the first records of these mites for the States of Coahuila and Tamaulipas, Mexico.